Montpellier startup Cayceo designed and developed Ipneo, a medical hypnosis solution using virtual reality, helping reduce patients’ anxiety and pain before or during treatment. The tool was tested by the Montpellier Cancer Institute.
Nicolas Villeneuve, founder of Cayceo ©David Richard
Grand prize at e-Health World 2019
Nicolas Villeneuve, a 3D graphic designer uses techniques from 3D animation cinema and video games to develop the virtual reality technology. He also works with three clinical psychologists. Starting in May, the first pre-anesthesia tests were performed at the Clinic du Park in Castelnau le Lez and the maternity ward at the Clémentville Clinic. The Montpellier Cancer Institute has been experimenting with the tool since July 16.Cayceo’s virtual reality hypnosis solution received the Grand Prize for hospital treatment innovation at the e-Health World conference held in Monaco in March 2019. The conference is dedicated to digital health and tomorrow’s medicine. Founded in 2017, the startup already has four employees. The company’s headquarters are in Lunel, just east of Montpellier, but the company and its team are based at the Tropisme Hall facility in Montpellier, where they work and develop solutions. Cayceo presented its technology at the 11th French Forum for Hypnosis and Short Therapies at the Corum Conference Center in Montpellier in May. The company also conducted a survey about its solution with about fifty practitioners.“Health care establishments in the Montpellier Métropole area and around the region offer a privileged field for our development,” exclaims the company director.
“98% of the practitioners surveyed recognized the solution’s ability to activate hypnotic processes and would recommend it to a patient or colleague,” adds Nicolas Villeneuve, who launched a round of funding so investors could accompany Ipneo development starting in September.
